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No Job? No Help!

// February 5th, 2009 // No Comments » // Personal

Hmm, recent news from this Emerald Isle – the staffs of Woolies (recently closed) have received a sum of money from the States of Jersey (our government) to cover the Notice and Redundancy payments that were being withheld by the administrators.

This has gotten me thinking with regards to a couple of points that you (good readers) may not be aware of.

First off – Jersey has NO unemployment benefit / job seekers allowance or Income Support for those who, through no fault of their own are out of work. Whilst it is possible to get certain allowances they are only made available for those who are off work due to long term incapacity. Of course at the same time there are a host of benefits for those in work (assuming they’ve been resident for long enough) but by ad large you can expect almost no tangible support from the States.

Secondly – Jersey has no mandatory Redundancy payment under the current law. This is being debated at some point but effectively – you lose your job, you get paid your notice and you’re out.

Why does the news about Woolies annoy me? Simply enough because, in this single instance, the Government have stepped in to provide a benefit that the rest of the population are denied. Whilst I am personally glad that the Woolies staff have been looked after and that they’ll get some money towards the already exorbitant cost of living in this island I am also more than a little p’d off. I lost my job in December … where’s my hand out?

I’m a fairly vocal (if you know me in person that is) critic of the UK benefits system as, so far as I can tell, it encourages laziness, pregnancy and supports an under class of society that do little to deserve anything more than some time in a prison cell. I am aware that for some families the benefits are needed and are appreciated, indeed I doubt my own family would have managed to make ends meet if it weren’t for the Family Allowance paid to my mum for me and my sister – that put food on the table and fuel in the car. That said, having spent 18 months working in an Off Licence I got used to (and sick of) seeing the council housed, jobless father’s of 3 kids by different partners wandering in and spending their Giro on White Cider and cigarettes.

I don’t think that Jersey needs to consider a move to a system that is quite so open to abuse as the UK benefits portfolio but at the same time it would be nice to know that there was something available for those of us who’ve worked hard, paid our taxes and social security, given our time to local charities and projects and find ourselves out of a job WITHOUT having to get the States to pay out on a one off basis.

I’m not looking for a handout but I’m actively seeking work in a very difficult climate (and by Work I do mean a job that pays enough to pay the rent and 35 hours on minimum wage is simply not enough to live on) and would like a little support from my government – especially as they’re doling* out thousands to specific individuals.

What do you think? Am I being selfish and lazy or do we need change in the island?

*Pun most definitely intended – I may be jobless and broke but I can still make good with the giggles!

Wot’s Wob Watching at the moment?

// February 4th, 2009 // No Comments » // Personal

Not literally – that would be silly as I would surely not be concentrating on the typing but on the show – or the other way round. Either way the two are, by and large, mutually exclusive.

No, what I mean was what TV shows am I into at the moment…

Well to be honest it’s more of the same. The next run of BSG is proving to be a return to form with plenty of WTF (What the FRACK???) moments and some punchy plot lines. I also get the feeling that the safeties are off for this 4th and final season.

Fringe and Chuck are back and on going in much the same vein. I’m starting to look forward to Fringe more and more as Olivia seems to be in danger of developing a personality and they aren’t being too X-Files esque just yet. Chuck? Well Chuck is Chuck but am looking forward to the 3D episode from the Superbowl. I made glasses and everything!

What’s new? Well Prison Break is gone and done with (I think) and frankly won’t be missed – it got a bit lost again thereby proving it was a great show if someone was breaking out of somewhere and had little else to offer otherwise.

My only really new addition to the line up is Lie to Me staring Tim Roth as a human lie detector. It has already had some good plotlines but as a) I like it and b) it’s on Fox it will probably be cancelled before too long.

Oh and 24 is back and kicking ass. You can still play the drinking game (if you don’t know the rules then Google it – or I might post them here in a bit) and it’s the classic Baur ass kick fest all round.

Up coming? I’m really looking forward to Dollhouse which premiere in the States on the 13th Feb and Fox have stuck it back to back with Sarah Conner – Chronicles thingy which at least means it should survive half a season.

If you’ll excuse me I’m going to fire up my Torrent Client and see what else is out there that I can catch up on.

More from me in a bit.

Rob

Books vs Movies -a depressing truth

// February 4th, 2009 // No Comments » // Personal

In the essence to keep my brain active whilst out of work without actually resorting to doing any (work that is) I’ve taken to raiding the Waterstones’ 3 for 2 table at my local massive multinational book store.

I’m not sure why I don’t simply pop to the library and get the same amount of reading enjoyment for free but there your are.

Anyway, a recent trend (or not so recent not I come to think about it) is the top 10 list containing large amounts of books that have been made into movies. This means things like the excellent “The Reader” and the teen horror romance Twiglet Twilight are front and centre in the charts. Of course it also means Dan Brown make the occasional re-appearance but his books tend to drip from the shelves akin to excrement between two covers.

What’s worrying me is simply this – how many people are buying the book because they’ve seen the movie? I tend to do it the other way round (often with very disappointing results – looking at you Twiglet) prefering the trappings of my own imagination to the realisation of some multi million pound studio effort.

How about you? Read then watch? Vice Versa? Or haven’t picked up a book in years?

This is for my lil sis…

// February 4th, 2009 // No Comments » // Personal

For whom this state of mind is becoming common place

[audio:DazedandConfused.mp3]

Cheers fimble sis!

Job Hunting

// February 2nd, 2009 // No Comments » // Personal

One of the main problems with being made redundant is that, eventually, one has to start seeking alternative employment.

This leads to the pain and fear involved in pulling out your CV and dusting it off before having to fill out a raft of applications (the majority of which simply transpose the information from your CV into a format that has no doubt been determined by virtue of some seriously hard work in a HR department somewhere) and then the waiting… oh my goodness the waiting.

Anyway, I’ve got a couple of tips for anyone who’s looking for a job at the moment to hopefully ease the pain:

1. Make sure you have multiple versions of your CV – this may sound like madness to most people but think about the positions you’re applying to. Now think about the work experience you have and the qualifications. Now re work your CV so that the relevant skills and qualifications are given precedence. For example, I’ve applied for both a sys admin position and a developer position. My work experience under the same job is drastically different for each position. The Sys admin application gets a raft of info on my skills in clustering and server admin skills, the development application has much more focus on my development skills. Both receive a footnote about the other skills. Common sense if you look at it this way. Your CV should NEVER just be sat in a folder somewhere. It needs to be tweaked and customised for each and every role you apply for. Oh and save these versions somewhere safe – multiple roles may come up with the same requirements and rather than haveing to start from scratch you can simply start with your “Development” CV and tweak it from there




2. Ensure you have a template for a covering letter and envelopes – again may sound silly but a good template that prints the address in the right place will save you hours of hassle and make it much more likely that you’ll send in that application. Get yourself some window envelopes with auto adhesive. Make it as easy as possible for you to get your CV out there.




3. Get a second number – if, like me, you find yourself jumping at the phone on every ring only to find yourself disappointed by the call from your Mum, school friend or Double Glazing Salesman, grab your self a pay as you go SIM card and a spare mobile – give this number out and you effectively have a hire me hotline that cost you very little. No risk of missed calls and the distinction in ring tones means you’ll be more relaxed when the call does come in.




4. Scan application forms for completing in Word – no one likes hand writing these days and odds are good that your best script is not going to be as good as Arial. So scan in paper application forms, drop them into Word or Photoshop and complete them on the computer. Then print them again and send it in. You can copy and paste from your CV, spell check and correct if needed, and, should the applications “get lost” you can print another in no time.




5. Stick to your working routine – this one is really hard to manage but try and stick to a working week. Monday – Friday make sure you are up and ready to “work” by 08:30, give yourself tasks to complete whether it be applying for positions, chasing applications or even extending your skill base by training online. Work a full day, complete with lunch hour and then finish at 17:30. Don’t let your partner or family nag you into work that you would traditionally have done out of work hours just because “you’re at home with noting to do” you DO have something to do – applying for jobs and this can be a full time occupation in it’s own right. Equally, give your self time at the weekends to relax and unwind – very few companies are going to call you on Saturday morning so use that time to spend with family and loved ones – go for walks, do some exercise and chill out in preparation for the next working week.




6. Don’t hide – we’ve all been there – the no job, little money scenario where it’s tempting to stick your head in a hole fashioned from lie-ins and day time TV. And sure, for a week or so it’s permissible. But then get yourself up, showered and out there, lunch with friends, email, Facebook, do whatever you can to maintain your social network as job opportunity can come from the most surprising people and a personal recommendation is not going to come your way if you’re stuck into the Gilmore Girls every day

I hope this helps someone. If you have any tips for job hunters then please drop them in the comments box below.